Assistant United States Attorney
United States Attorney's Office
Southern District of Texas
Announcement Number 12-SDTX-22 (TERM–HOU-HEALTH CARE FRAUD)
About the Office: The United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Texas, with approximately 190 Assistant United States Attorneys, is among the largest in the country. The office prosecutes federal crimes and represents the interests of the United States in civil cases. The Southern District of Texas stretches from the Houston area southwest to the Mexican border. The United States Attorney's Office operates staffed offices in Brownsville, Corpus Christi, Houston, Laredo, McAllen, and Victoria.
Responsibilities and Opportunity Offered: The United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Texas seeks one experienced criminal prosecutor to serve a in a term appointment not to exceed September 30, 2013, as an Assistant United States Attorney in its Houston office. The incumbent will investigate and prosecute criminal violations of federal laws, primarily involving health care fraud. The successful applicant will work closely with federal, state and local law enforcement agents and medical experts to investigate and prosecute individuals and entities that fraudulently bill Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance companies for home health services, durable medical equipment, infusion therapy, physical therapy, and other health care related products and services.
This is a TERM position not exceed 9/30/13. The TERM appointment may be extended for an additional period of time without further competition; however, any extension is not guaranteed and is also dependent upon budgetary restraints. The incumbent may be considered for placement in a permanent Assistant United States Attorney position without further competition during the term of the appointment; however, placement in a permanent position is not implied or guaranteed. The incumbent will be required to sign a statement regarding the conditions of the TERM appointment prior to entry on duty.
Qualifications: Required Qualifications: Applicants must possess a J.D. degree from an accredited law school, and must be duly licensed and authorized to practice as an attorney under the laws of any state or territory of the United States or of the District of Columbia. Active bar membership (any jurisdiction) is required. Additionally, applicants must have at least three years of full-time experience as a licensed attorney.
Preferred Qualifications: Hiring preferences include significant first-chair federal criminal trial experience, strong academics, outstanding organizational skills, superior legal writing and research ability, and a demonstrated commitment to professionalism, ethics, civility, and public service. This is a highly specialized position. As such, we are seeking applicants who currently have several years of experience working on cases involving health care matters. We are particularly interested in applicants with litigation experience in handling medical experts and the large volume of documents involved in billing related to Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance companies for home health services, durable medical equipment, infusion therapy, physical therapy, and other health care related products and services.
Travel: Occasional travel may be required.
Salary Information: Pay for Assistant United States Attorneys is administratively determined, based in part on the number of years of professional attorney experience. The 2012 range of basic pay is $44,581 to $131,534, plus locality pay.
Location: Position is located in Houston, Texas.
Relocation Expenses: Relocation expenses will not be authorized.
How To Apply: Submit required application materials (described below) via E-mail to: attorneys.usatxs@usdoj.gov. Please list the vacancy announcement number in the subject line of your E-mail. PDF format is preferred.
Kenneth Magidson
United States Attorney
United States Attorney's Office
Southern District of Texas
1000 Louisiana, Suite 2300
Houston, Texas 77002
No telephone calls or faxes, please.
What To Send: Required materials include: (1) a cover letter; (2) a resume; and (3) a writing sample of not more than 10 pages. Incomplete applications will not be considered.
When To Apply: The announcement is open until filled. The initial cutoff date for receipt of applications is August 15, 2012.
Internet Sites: This and other attorney vacancy announcements can be found at: http://www.justice.gov/careers/legal/attvacancies.html
Department Policies: Assistant United States Attorneys generally must reside in the district to which he or she is appointed. See 28 U.S.C. § 545 for district-specific information.
All initial attorney appointments to the Department of Justice are made on a time-limited (temporary) basis. Temporary appointments may, or may not, be extended or made permanent without further competition.
The U.S. Department of Justice is an Equal Opportunity/Reasonable Accommodation Employer. Except where otherwise provided by law, there will be no discrimination because of color, race, religion, national origin, political affiliation, marital status, disability (physical or mental), age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, genetic information, status as a parent, membership or non-membership in an employee organization, on the basis of personal favoritism, or any non merit factor. The Department of Justice welcomes and encourages applications from persons with physical and mental disabilities. The Department is firmly committed to satisfying its affirmative obligations under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, to ensure that persons with disabilities have every opportunity to be hired and advanced on the basis of merit within the Department of Justice. This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities where appropriate. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please notify the agency. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.
It is the policy of the Department to achieve a drug-free workplace and persons selected for employment will be required to pass a drug test which screens for illegal drug use prior to final appointment. Employment is also contingent upon the completion and satisfactory adjudication of a background investigation. Only U.S. citizens are eligible for employment with the Executive Office for Immigration Review and the United States Attorneys' Offices. Unless otherwise indicated in a particular job advertisement, non-U.S. citizens may apply for employment with other organizations, but should be advised that appointments of non-U.S. citizens are extremely rare; such appointments would be possible only if necessary to accomplish the Department's mission and would be subject to strict security requirements. Applicants who hold dual citizenship in the U.S. and another country will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
There is no formal rating system for applying veterans' preference to attorney appointments in the excepted service; however, the Department of Justice considers veterans' preference eligibility as a positive factor in attorney hiring. Applicants eligible for veterans' preference must include that information in their cover letter or resume and attach supporting documentation (e.g., the DD 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty and other supporting documentation) to their submissions. Although the "point" system is not used, per se, applicants eligible to claim 10-point preference must submit Standard Form (SF) 15, Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference, and submit the supporting documentation required for the specific type of preference claimed (visit the OPM website, www.opm.gov/forms/pdf_fill/SF15.pdf for a copy of SF 15, which lists the types of 10-point preferences and the required supporting document(s). Applicants should note that SF 15 requires supporting documentation associated with service-connected disabilities or receipt of nonservice-connected disability pensions to be dated 1991 or later except in the case of service members submitting official statements or retirement orders from a branch of the Armed Forces showing that his or her retirement was due to a permanent service-connected disability or that he/she was transferred to the permanent disability retired list (the statement or retirement orders must indicate that the disability is 10% or more).
The Department of Justice cannot control further dissemination and/or posting of information contained in this vacancy announcement. Such posting and/or dissemination is not an endorsement by the Department of the organization or group disseminating and/or posting the information.